Charles e



Patented Aug. 30, I898. c. E. PAGE. BICYCLE SADDLE.

(Application filed Jan. 11, 1897.)

(No Model.)

BR b meme/a m: Noam: PETERS cov mom'umoq WASHINGTON, D. c.

from the top down to the lower edge 0.

CHARLES E. PAGE, OF'DENVER, ooLo ADo, ASSIGNOR TO THE PAGE sADDLEooMPANY, OF SAME PLAoE.

BICYCLE-SADDLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 609,944, dated August30, 1898.

Application filed January 11, 1897. $erial No. 618,773. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. PAGE, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Denver, in the county of Arapahoe and State ofColorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inBicycle-Saddles; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of referencemarked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in bicycle-saddles; and the objectsof my invention are, first, to provide a bicyclesaddle' provided withtwo independent elastic seatsurfaces; second, to provide a saddle-basestamped from sheet metal and of peculiar contour and containingstiifening-ribs formed by pressing grooves in the metal, and, third, toprovide elastic seat-plates of a form and contour especially adapted tothe comfort of the rider. I attain these objects by the mechanismillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which i Figure 1 designatesa bottom plan view of my improved saddle; Fig. 2, a top plan view of thesame; Fig. 3, a side elevation; Fig. 4, a cross-section; Fig. 5, aperspective view of the bottom of the rubber pad; Fig. 6, a topperspective view of the same; and Fig. 7, a cross-section of the coverof the pad and of a piece of leather which, with the cover, is used toinclose the pad.

Similar letters of reference refer to similar parts throughout theseveral views.

The base A comprises an integral plate of steel stamped into therequired form and contour from sheet metal. In plan view it consists ofa horn portion B, which is rounded In longitudinal contour the center Dof the saddle is lower than the horn, and this central portion is formedby a slight downward curve which extends longitudinally of the saddlefrom the end of. the cantle to the horns and front sides of the saddle.The rear part of the saddle is curved very slightly upward to form acantle E, but is in side elevation sub stantially a flat cantle, and itsedge is on a.

horizontal line with the top of thehorn. It offers no support whateverto the rider, as the seat-plates extend above it. The front sides of thebase'curve also upward from the center to the horn. The base is madesolid through the center and is very thin, and in transverse section, asshown in Fig. 4:, it is substantiallya horizontal plane, and in order tostiffen it sufficiently to maintain its contour under the riders weightI form several ribs G, three being sufficient. One extends along thecenter of the saddle, and the other two branch off from the center ribtoward the sides of the saddle. base is pressed down all around andforms a bordering-flange. At the center of the cantle, to the insideedge of the flange, I secure a clip H, which has a projecting portion Iextending over the base, and to the under side of the base, near thehorn, Isecure a second clip J. This clip J has a central portion whichis raised above the base, and both this clip and the aforesaid clip areprovided with holes K. -These clips are used to secure the seat to acommon form of saddle-spring.

The elastic seat portions comprise each a cast-rubber plate 0 ofsubstantially semicircular form in plan and of irregular wedge shape inthickness. These rubber plates have cast into one side of them a seriesof cells which extend into them from one side to within about onethirty-second of an inch of the opposite'side, While the surface of theopposite side presents a smooth plain surface, as shown inFigs. 5 and 6.One end of these seat-plates is thicker than the other, and the curvedside is also a little thinner than the straight side, as shownfinFig. 4.The thick end is placed at the cantle end of the saddle, and to near theedge of the cantle the thin end of the seat-plates tapers off with around curve to the lower side of the plates, forming substantially athin edge at the forward end of the seat-plates. The curved side of thepads is also rounded from the top surface of the plates to the bottomside and, with the front end, is placed close to the outside edges ofthe side of the saddle and also close to the horn portion, where itblends into the seat portions and gives a tapering sloping surface Theouter edge of the for the riders legs on its downward stroke to cushionon. I cover the top of the metal base with a piece of leather, rivetingit to the flange by rivets F and at the center by a rivet N. I then takea piece of leather M, larger than the seat-plates, and place it on aboard and place a seat-plate upon it and then lay another piece ofleather over the seat-plate, and this second piece of leather is enoughlarger than the seat-plate to make a cover for it. The cup-shaped coversfor the seat-plates are then made by means of a suitable cup-shaped die,which is of exactly the same shape as the seatplate, by pressing thistop piece of leather, with the die, over the seat-plate. The die ispressed down until it rests firmly on the piece of leather M and formsthe flange portion of the cup. I then cut through both pieces ofleather, following the die around, or, if preferred, the die can beremoved and the piece of leather cutthrough at a little distance fromthe sides of the cover, which leaves a narrow marginal flanged edge allaround the cover and the piece below larger than the seat-plate. I thenplace some glue on the bottom side of the piece of leather M, upon whichthe seatplate rests, and place them and the seat-plates and covers intheir proper position on the leather covering of the base before it isplaced on the metal base of the saddle and allow the piece of leather Mto dry on the leather covering of the base, after which the leatherpiece M and the cover P are sewed through the marginal flanged edge ofthe cap and the edge of the piece M to the leather covering of the base,the glue between the piece M and the leather covering of the baseholding them against moving from their correct positions on the cover ofthe base while they are being sewed together. After the seat-plates aresewed to the leather covering of the base I rivet it to the base, asdescribed. The additional piece of leather M, which I place under theseat-plate, acts as a stiffener and as a supporting-base to thepartitions of the cells. The seat-plates are arranged on the leathercovering with their ends which are adjacent to the horn diverging fromthe longitudinal center of the saddle and farther apart than theiropposite ends. When the plates are in place, they are curved from thecantle and horn down into the center of the saddle and form a curvedhollow in the central portion of each plate for the tuber ischii of therider to rest in, as well as a curved and inclined terminal slope forthe riders leg on the downward stroke.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

The combination in a saddle of a base stamped from sheet metal having ahorn and a substantially flat cantle arranged on substantially ahorizontal level with said horn and the seat portions curved downwardbelow said cantle and horn with a slight curve extending from the top ofsaid cantle to the horn and transversely across the center of the saddlein approximately a horizontal line, a downwardly-turned marginal edgeall around the base and three stiffening-ribs formed in the base bydepressing a narrow concaved groove in desired positions, a covering ofleather stretched over said base and riveted to its marginal flange andat the saddles center with an independent piece of leather glued to saidleather covering over each seat portion of the metal base and withrubber seat-plates resting on said piece of leather and on said leathercovering directly over each seat portion of the metal base of the saddleand of substantially semicircular form and approximately wedge-shaped inthickness and adapted to rest in the downward-curved central seatportions of the base with their thinnest edges toward the horn andhaving said seatplates provided with a series of open cells extendinginto them from their bottom side to within a short distance of its topsurface, leaving a thin partition and its thickest end resting on thecantle and its thinnest end extending approximately even with theflanged edge of the base and at its side adjacent to the horn, andhaving the border edge of said independent glued piece of leather of thesame shape as the said seat-pads, a leather cup-shaped cover fittingtightly over said seatplates and provided with a right angled flangededge adapted to be sewed to the edges of said independent piece ofleather on which said seat-plates rest, and also to be sewed with saidindependent piece of leather to the leather covering of the base,wherebysaid rubber seat-plates, their covers and the independent piece ofleather and the leather covering of the base are integrally securedtogether but are loose and free from the metal base of the saddle at itsseat portions and are free to give, expand and stretch in all directionsindependent of it, substantially as set forth.

IIO

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES E. PAGE. Witnesses:

CARL A. FREEMAN, RICHARD W1 TARRANT.

